#196 When Training Becomes Too Much: Rethinking Reactive Dog Walks

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Are you exhausted from constantly managing your reactive dog's behavior on walks? You're not alone. Many well-intentioned owners transform every neighborhood stroll into an impromptu training session, creating a cycle where neither dog nor human ever truly relaxes.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
When you have a reactive dog, it is tempting to
turn every single walk into atraining walk.
You're out in the neighborhood,your dog sees a trigger, you
start working on desensitizationright then and there.
But here's the problem If everywalk is about seeing triggers,

(00:26):
then your dog never truly getsto relax.
They're always on, and honestlyso are you, and that could be
exhausting for both of you.
I like to treat desensitizationas a planned event.
Pick a controlled locationwhere you know you can keep your
distance from triggers and workat your dog's comfort level.

(00:49):
These are your training walks,your desensitization walks.
But then give your dog someoff-duty walks somewhere you're
unlikely to see a trigger.
Somewhere you're unlikely tosee a trigger that might mean an

(01:11):
empty parking lot, a closedbusiness, a closed school.
Find a location and just letthem sniff and explore and just
be a dog without the stress ofconstantly seeing triggers.
And here's my rule duringdesensitization sessions Three
and through.
If your dog reacts three times,that means he starts barking and

(01:31):
lunging and hitting the end ofthe leash.
That is your signal to end thattraining session.
Why?
Because every big reactionfloods their system with
adrenaline and other stresshormones and you stack a couple
of those reactions closetogether and they're no longer
in a learning state.

(01:52):
They're simply running off ofadrenaline, which makes more
reactions even more likely.
So when you hit three reactions, call it.
Either move somewhere with notriggers or head home and just
let your dog decompress.
You can always pick up the workagain tomorrow when they're

(02:14):
calmer and more ready to learn.
Just remember not every walkshould be a desensitization walk
and not every desensitizationwalk should go on until your dog
is frazzled.
Plan your sessions, give yourdog time off from seeing

(02:34):
triggers and stick to three andthrough.
So training stays productiveand stress stays low.